So far so amazing

What a week…

The nerves really started to hit me on the plane. Thirteen hours of anxiousness and nervousness made it impossible to get any sleep. Thankfully, I had two other Americans on my flight that are also studying in Wellington, which made the trip a tiny bit more calming. We landed in Auckland before the sunrise and for some reason not being able to see the country from above made me even more restless. I remember thinking, “Holy shit, am I doing the right thing? Can I survive on my own for the next six months?”

After a hectic layover Auckland airport, we finally lifted back into the air and an hour later we landed in Wellington. As soon as I looked out, every negative feeling and thought I had disappeared. I instantly fell in love with the city. Wellington is so incredibly beautiful it left me speechless. The streets are covered in murals and the diversity reminded me of much of San Francisco. I started hanging out with the other two Americans from my flight, but each day our group grew bigger and bigger. I am still shocked at how easy it was to make friends and how perfect all of our personalities match with one another. All of us, but one are from America. I think that is one reason we all get along; we are diverse and cultured in our own way. We understand where we all come from, but we all have something unique to give back to the group. We have a common purpose being here: to learn, connect, and travel.

Over the weekend, the school took all of the international students to the Red Rocks Nature Reserve. We hiked a total of twelve miles to the beach where we hung out on the rocks with the seals. We’ve been lucky to have a mild windy week here, but I think our fortune is running out. Windy Wellington is indeed very windy. Our campus is a five to ten minute walk from the apartments and there were times where I thought I might just fall over. I can say though that with all this walking that my legs will be very toned by the end of the trip. Overall, the past week has been one of the happiest weeks of my life. I’ve already experienced so much from building new relationships to being that person in class with the accent.

Now that I have wifi in my apartment, my website will be the easiest way for me to update everyone back home. Every corner I turn offers something new to learn so I am trying to soak up every thing I can. I find it difficult to stay in touch with people back home because there’s just too much to say. I will make sure to let everyone know where I am going; especially if it’s a big trip, but forgive me if I forget to check my phone every now and then.